Manila council passes students’ safety ordinance

MANILA, Philippines–Students studying in Manila can soon count on their schools to give them shelter if they end up stranded due to floods, heavy rain or other calamities as part of an ordinance aimed at keeping them safe from accidents or criminals.

The city council enacted last week the Students’ Safety and Security Ordinance which outlines measures that all public and private schools in all levels in Manila should comply with for the protection of their students.

It will take effect once it is approved by Mayor Joseph Estrada.

Notably, the ordinance compels schools in the city to accommodate students who are unable to go home due to flooding and other calamities.

“In the event of floods and other disasters and emergencies, the schools, colleges and universities shall provide safe and secure accommodation within the school premises to stranded students. This shall be available to students until it is safe for them to go home,” the ordinance read.

It added: “It shall be unlawful for schools to send students home or lock the school premises in case of the aforementioned emergencies when it is obviously not safe for them to leave school, even beyond reasonable hours.”

The author of the ordinance, Councilor Antonio Capistrano, said that this provision was intended to provide a uniform policy for Manila schools to follow in case of emergencies such as when heavy rains and flooding occur late in the afternoon or early in the evening.

“We have heard reports that students who get stranded in schools are still being asked by school officials to go home. So this will help students in case they get stranded due to sudden floods, for example. At least they can stay in their campuses until it’s safe for them to go home,” he said in an interview.

Aside from this, school authorities would also be required to coordinate with barangay (village) and police officials on the conduct of security checks on the campus every hour during daytime and every 30 minutes during nighttime.

The ordinance also requires them to install security cameras and to maintain adequate lighting on campus and adjacent areas. They should also coordinate with city and barangay officials to designate loading and unloading areas for their students.

Those found violating the ordinance shall be ordered to pay a fine of P5,000 or face imprisonment of one month.

If students are injured or killed or if property is damaged as a result of the violation, the jail term will go up to six months.